Khaldoon: Mancini right man for City

06 May 2010 08:17

Manchester City chairman Khaldoon al-Mubarak insists Roberto Mancini will not be sacked and will instead be given "all the tools he needs".

Mancini was installed as successor to Mark Hughes in December and given the stated target of reaching 70 points or cementing a top-four berth - both of which are now out of range after defeat to Spurs.

Yet, despite the negativity that surrounded their handling of Hughes' departure, Khaldoon and owner Sheikh Mansour have never viewed Mancini's appointment as a short-term option.

And, although they will spend the summer planning for the Europa League rather than the Champions League as they hoped, the City hierarchy are committed to Mancini.

"There is no speculation," Khaldoon told City's website.

"Roberto has done an excellent job. I am very happy and Sheikh Mansour is delighted with the way he has organised the team.

"With a good pre-season to prepare for next season he (Mancini) is going to do a wonderful job for us next season and for many years.

"I have the highest regard for him as a human being and as a person and believe he is definitely the right manager for this club for many years."

Khaldoon's words will come as a relief to the majority of the City faithful, who feel their club would benefit from a period of stability after going through five managers in the past six seasons.

Although many would argue the Blues have performed no better than was the case when Hughes was at the helm, the argument from those inside the club is that the Welshman let himself down with a lack of communication with senior figures inside the club, particularly football director Brian Marwood, whose influence is so strong.

"We made a big leap last year," he said. "It is a different team now, especially in the last couple of months.

"This is a much more organised team.

"Roberto is driven and committed. He has a winning mentality. He wants to achieve things and has the interests of the club at heart.

"What he needs this summer is time to prepare. We know the areas which need to be improved and the manager will be given all the tools he needs to be well prepared for next season."

It will be fascinating to see how much reshaping of the City squad actually takes place.

Although Mancini rubber-stamped Adam Johnson's signing in January, his only real signing was former Inter Milan midfielder Patrick Vieira.

He has now had time to assess the strengths and weaknesses of those at his disposal, so his handling of Robinho and Emmanuel Adebayor, who cost almost £60million between them, is awaited with eager interest.